Class of 1999: A Most Original Year

Wednesday, November 20, 2024

Class of 1999: A Most Original Year
Film Series

In 1999, Hollywood as we know it exploded with landmark titles including The Virgin Suicides, Run Lola Run, Election, Being John Malkovich, and Magnolia, pushing cinema to new limits. Freed from the restraints of budget and technology, the industry produced a slew of classics that took on every topic imaginable. The result was a highly unruly, deeply influential set of films that would not only change filmmaking, but also give us our first glimpse of the coming 21st century.

• 🎟️ The Virgin Suicides
  • In a quiet suburb of Detroit, the five Lisbon sisters, who are obsessively watched by the neighborhood boys, commit suicide one by one over the course of a single year. As the boys observe them from afar, transfixed, they piece together the mystery of the family’s fatal melancholy in this modern classic adapted into a critically acclaimed film by Sofia Coppola. The Virgin Suicides is a hypnotic and unforgettable tale of adolescent love, disquiet, and death. Estimated runtime: 97 min. Rated R.
    

• 🎟️ Run Lola Run
  
  • Lola answers a call from her boyfriend Manni, a small-time courier for a big-time gangster. He has a problem – his boss is coming to pick up 100,000 Deutsche Marks in twenty minutes, but he doesn’t have the money. With Manni’s life on the line, Lola runs through the streets of Berlin to reach him and somehow pick up 100,000 marks along the way, making split-second decisions and encountering acquaintances, family, and strangers. As the clock ticks down, the tiniest choices become life-altering (or life-ending), and the fine line between fate and fortune begins to blur. Estimated runtime: 81 min. Rated R.
     
  • PLUS: Join Brian Raftery, author of Best. Movie. Year. Ever.: How 1999 Blew Up the Big Screen, to learn about his book and the films in the accompanying series Class of 1999: A Most Original Year. Following the presentation, there will be a book signing with copies for sale at The Museum Store.
    

• 🎟️ Election
  • Tracy Flick, a straight-A go-getter, is determined to be president of Carver High’s student body. Popular teacher Jim McAllister decides to derail Tracy by recruiting an opposition candidate. Estimated runtime: 103 min. Rated R.
      
• 🎟️ Being John Malkovich
  • In this quirky cult-favorite comedy, unemployed New York City puppeteer Craig Schwartz reluctantly takes a temp job as a filing clerk for the eccentric Dr. Lester. While at work, Craig discovers a portal that leads into the mind of renowned actor John Malkovich. Estimated runtime: 113 min. Rated R.
      
• 🎟️ Magnolia
  • On one random day in the San Fernando Valley, a dying father, a young wife, a male caretaker, a famous lost son, a police officer in love, a boy genius, an ex-boy genius, a game show host and an estranged daughter will each become part of a dazzling multiplicity of plots, but one story.  Estimated runtime: 189 min. Rated R.